Heaven Has No Rage
by CallTheWindaThief
Summary: After the war, Draco only has one real friend - a scrawny Hufflepuff by the name of Merlin Emrys. Though very different, they'll soon find that they can identify with one another in much more ways than just their loneliness. **A Drarry and Merthur story**
1. Chapter 1

Draco Malfoy had seen a lot in his time. He had been a servant to the Dark Lord, witnessed the horrors of Fiendfyre, seen the Boy Who Lived die and then rise again. He had seen the opening of a supposedly mythical Chamber of Secrets, witnessed Hogwarts in its prime and at its lowest points, judged first-hand the trials of the Triwizard Tournament. He had seen death and life and freedom and slavery and a plethora of other wonderful and horrible things that most people never got to see in a lifetime. He knew good guys, bad guys, and everything in between. He had lived a full life. But never, ever, in all of his time on Earth had he ever known a person like Merlin Emrys.

He was a Hufflepuff in every sense of the word. Childish, dopey, even a little ditsy-looking, with ridiculous cheekbones and the cheekiest grin in the entire world. He was everything that Draco wasn't. Kind and caring and sentimental and loyal and an overall _pansy _when you got right down to it. He took his tea with plenty of sugar and then joked that he didn't need it because he was already so sweet. He laughed at his own jokes, didn't even seem to notice his homely appearance half of the time, and his _ears_! Draco could go on for ages about those ridiculous ears of his. They made him look like an overgrown Cornish Pixie and mixed with his dopey smile and defined cheekbones, he looked the very part of another stupid prat waiting to be picked on. The strangest thing about Merlin Emrys, though, wasn't any of peculiarities or eccentricities. It was the fact that Draco absolutely, one hundred percent _adored_ him.

Not that he'd ever admit it out loud, of course. No, he'd leave that sentimental bullshit for people like...well, people like Merlin. But he couldn't deny there was something about the kid that made him feel a type of joy he hadn't felt in a while. Not like love or anything - no, no, Merlin was certainly not his type, though Draco was admittedly fond of how his hair always took on that just-been-shagged look. But it made him feel...warm to be around the other wizard. Almost like he had a friend. So when Merlin had introduced himself the first day on the job, Draco had let him stick around. Maybe he was a little like a clingy puppy that had been kicked too many times and abandoned for being so tragic looking, but who didn't love puppies, right?

Besides, Draco would take all the friendships he could get. After the war, he hadn't exactly been treated with what one would call "kindness". More people that he worked with hexed him than the people they were helping to track down, and though he was technically working in an important job in a department headed (and personally selected) by none other than the Chosen One himself, he didn't ever seem to get the same respect as everyone else. People hit him with Stinging and Tripping Jinxes whenever they got the chance; they whispered about him when he passed by their offices. Even his fellow Trackers (as Potter liked to call them - a stupid name, but since they weren't exactly "Aurors", he'd have to deal with it) didn't seem to like him much. The only one who would work one on one with him was Merlin. Even Potter, who had been the one to drag Draco out of the house and into the office with the friendly statement of, "It's either my department or Azkaban, Malfoy," didn't dare to work personally with him. In fact, since he'd gotten the job, he'd barely communicated with his department head at all. It was like he had been given the job out of pity and now everyone was just trying to pretend he wasn't there, which he supposed would be easier if he wasn't the best damn worker in the dump. Long story short, being Draco Malfoy didn't earn him many loyalties anymore. Even if Merlin was a little annoying and cheekier than a man with ears that size should be, he was a good person and the only one to date who could make Draco laugh in humor instead of bitterness. And that had to count for something.

"I brought you a surprise." Merlin's sing-song voice broke Draco's train of thought, and he looked up from the maps he had been surveying to see his friend standing in the door, holding two mugs. "Tea," the brunette said simply, walking into the office and placing one mug on the desk. "Made Emrys-style, just how I like it."

"You mean with enough sugar to give a giant an aneurysm and not a spot of milk?" Draco grabbed the cup in spite of himself and took a tentative sip. Merlin did have a tendency to go a little crazy when fixing up his tea (and he always used _sugar_, not honey, which drove him mad) but tea was tea. He'd take anything to keep him even a little more awake while he worked.

"Just the way you hate it," Merlin responded with a grin that was far too friendly and then he took a long drink of his own sugary-death-tea. Draco tried hard to keep his expression blank, but the man sitting in front of him had a personality more infectious than any disease he'd ever encountered. He soon found himself grinning as well and taking another sip of the tea he'd been given before turning back to the maps. Merlin, a hard worker in spite of his self-diagnosed A.D.D., leaned over the desk not long afterward to see what his partner was doing. "Any leads on the Baddock case appear while I was out?"

"Not more than we already figured," Draco responded with a frown as he mentally calculated the distance between Glasglow and Irvine. The Baddock family had been plaguing the Tracking Department for the past few weeks. Their son, Malcolm, was known to have been a supporter of Voldemort's ideals before the war but had never been old enough to actually join. His parents, however, had done quite a lot for the Dark Lord and they had been on the Auror Department's list for years now. The only problem was that after Voldemort fell two years ago, they vanished off the face of the planet. Potter and company all seemed to suspect that they were somewhere in Scotland so that was where Draco had been focusing a lot of his energy. But if he knew the Formers (another new term Potter had made them all adopt, equally as stupid as the first) as well as he thought he did, then Scotland was a long shot. They'd want to get as far away from London as possible. Maybe go to France or even America or Australia. Some place no one would take the energy to explore if they didn't have to. But since Potter said _Scotland_, he was only given permission to explore evidence in _Scotland_. And as predicted, he wasn't getting any information other than that the Baddocks weren't anywhere in the country. Like they were stupid enough to just move a few hundred miles north and remain on the same bloody island as the wizards trying their damnedest to track them down. Honestly. If anyone ever listened to Draco at all -

Ah, but that was it, wasn't it? No one ever listened to Draco.

"Ah, well, sorry mate," Merlin said, his tone sympathetic. "We should be getting some information back from those Trackers Harry sent down yesterday, though. Any moment now. That should give us a new lead." Draco sighed and pushed away the maps in front of him. Unless those Trackers came back with some miracle testimonial from someone saying they were housing the Baddocks in their basement, he honestly doubted they'd be getting any information he didn't already gather himself. But he wouldn't argue. It wouldn't do much good. He would just suggest _again_ that they look somewhere further away once the field Trackers got back to the office. Maybe then Potter would actually take him up on the offer and they could get some work done like everyone else. He had sent the most Aurors down the right road to finding their most wanted criminals. It was degrading to be restricted like this to a pointless location in one of the most troubling investigations just because he had known Malcolm when they were at Hogwarts. Shouldn't he have been given _more_ freedom because of that? Because he'd know how a fellow Slytherin and his family would think? But of course, in their minds, _Formers would be Formers_ and Draco just simply couldn't be trusted...

His fingers clenched around his mug as he picked it up for another drink. There was no need for him to start down that road. It just made him bitter, and when he got bitter, Merlin tended to leave to avoid being caught in the storm that was sure to follow. And since he had spent the entire morning alone, he wasn't necessarily prepared to spend the rest of the afternoon as such either.

"That it should," he responded after a while, letting out a sigh and loosening his tie as he slumped back in his seat. "Until then I guess there's really no point to stressing over these bloody maps for a single second longer."

"That's the spirit," Merlin said brightly, finishing off his tea and then dramatically slamming the mug down on the desk. "Now we can get the real party started. Who needs to do all this _work_-" he said the word like it was something particularly nasty, wrinkling his nose for effect "- anyway?"

"Here, here," Draco grinned, raising his own tea as though he was making a toast. "To not working!"

Merlin scrambled to grab his empty mug and then lifted it to meeting Draco's with a soft _clink_. "To not working!" Then the pair of them drank (or pretended to, in Merlin's case) and set their cups back down on the desk, grinning. Then they turned their heads in unison at the soft knocking on their door.

It was Potter. He was staring at the pair of them confusedly, as if he'd stepped into the wrong office and was trying to figure out how he'd managed to actually arrive there. Draco's grin immediately slipped at the sight of his childhood nemesis turned boss, though Merlin was still beaming brightly as he said, "Harry! Hey there, how can we help you?"

"Huh?" Ah, Potter had obviously retained the eloquence of his youth. The brunette shook his head as if clearing his thoughts, his expression softening as he grinned back at Merlin, though not nearly as brightly. More tiredly. "I was just...Checking up on...Thought I heard...No, no, I don't need anything actually. Thanks Merlin." Then he stepped out of the room just as quickly as he arrived, leaving a confused Draco and smiling Merlin to watch his retreating back.

"Well that was...odd," Draco commented quietly, turning his attention back to his co-worker.

"I think he fancies you," Merlin replied bluntly, rustling through a few of the maps Draco had pushed away, and the blond nearly choked on the breath he was taking in response.

"I beg your pardon?" he asked, his voice straining with the effort not to laugh.

"Harry," Merlin stated, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Fancies you. Or me. Though I'm pretty sure it's _you_, and if it is me, then I'm going to have to let him down easy because I'm sort of interested in someone else. So let's hope it's you because rejecting your boss is on my Uncle Gaius's list of sure-fire ways to get fired, and I'm rather liking this job. Beats being a magical stable boy, which surprisingly isn't as glamorous as you'd think."

Draco laughed. "Alright, Emrys, maybe you should take the rest of the day off. You've gone a bit mental in the course of the last five minutes..."

But Merlin just shrugged. "Hey, I could be wrong. But guys don't just barge into your office and then leave when they see you flirting with another bloke."

"We were _not_ flirting, sorry to disappoint you-"

"Not at all, I didn't think we were. But I'm thinking from Harry's point of view here."

The two fell silent and the room remained quiet for a few minutes save for the rustling of the papers Merlin was now going through to avoid looking Draco in the eye. After a while, though, Draco finally mumbled, "Mental. Completely bonkers," before drinking the rest of his tea in one large gulp. Merlin looked as though he were thinking how to respond, so to avoid further discussing it, he quickly added, "Ramblings of a crazy person aside, midst all that nonsense did I hear something about you being interested in someone?"

Not that Draco honestly cared, but the flush that immediately rose to Merlin's cheeks told him that subjects had switched in his friend's mind and that was honestly all that mattered. Anything to get away from the terrifying idea that Harry Potter might actually be _attracted_ to him.

"Well sort of," Merlin said with a dopey grin, eyes going a little blank as if he were replaying memories in his mind. "It's just this...well this _guy_ I may or may not have encountered while we were searching Wales for signs of the Baddocks."

"Uh huh," Draco teased, "which explains why you came back with _absolutely nothing_, you horny little ass hat."

"Shut up, like you got anything from that little expedition either." Merlin's ridiculous ears were turning an even more ridiculous shade of red, and it took all of Draco's willpower not to laugh at him. "Besides, we didn't actually talk much then and there. We just ran into each other and he was...well he was actually really rude, but-"

"Let me guess. The bloke's fit, right?"

"Gives you a run for your money, if you can believe it," Merlin grinned, "but that's not all. I don't know, there's a lot more to him than just that, I think. He was being an outright prick when I ran into him but when I saw him again, he recognized me and apologized." He shrugged. "Bloke like that can't be all bad."

"So a guy apologizes to you and suddenly that means you're in love with him?" Draco said with a smirk. "Hate to think of what that means for how you feel about me."

"You frequent my dreams, Draco, in so many filthy ways," Merlin replied blankly, not missing a beat - perfect delivery from a guy who spends his days talking to everyone he encounters like they're lost kittens. "Obviously I've talked to him on more occasions than just our little trip out there, you prat. I'm not a complete moron. And don't say something along the lines of 'Could have fooled me' because that's childish, even for you."

"Even for _me_-what's that supposed to mean? I'm not _childish_."

"And I'm the next Minister for Magic, yeah?" In response to Draco's surprised and slightly offended look, Merlin just laughed. "Oh come off it, Draco, like you _honestly_ think that you're not childish? You still think it's funny when someone burps loudly."

"More disturbing than funny, Emrys."

"Ah, that explains the hiding your face thing, then. But that might be even more childish. Twenty years old, and you're afraid of someone burping? Really? Don't you have other things to be disturbed by?" Draco didn't respond. "Face it, you're still a little...childish. But that's okay. I think it's funny. Most people would think a bloke like you would have lost that whole innocent vulnerable child thing..."

"Now you're just being insulting."

"But it's one of the many things I like about you, so stop being a git and just admit that you're childish."

Draco looked abashed. "I will do no such thing, Merlin. I should hex you for even suggesting it."

If Merlin took his threat seriously at all, he certainly didn't show it. He still grinned just as brightly as ever and even had the nerve to reach over and grab Draco's hand in a familiar, friendly way. "Don't be such a drama queen, you prat," he teased. "Besides, I can't have you with your knickers in a twist. You're meeting that guy we were just talking about today, and I want you to play nice."

Merlin did that a lot - made plans with Draco without actually making plans with him. The first time he'd done it, it had taken a lot of convincing (and a reservation at Draco's favorite restaurant) to get him to agree. The second time didn't go over much better but after the third time Merlin decided that the pair of them were going to be friends outside of work without Draco's consent, he honestly just stopped fighting it. Merlin was unlike him in almost every single way, but the one thing they did share was that neither had many friends. Draco still had Pansy and occasionally Blaise, though things had been awkward since the break-up, and apparently Merlin had this Welsh guy and then a few Muggles he had grown up around, but other than that, they only really had each other. Merlin's clumsiness and tendency to be a bit overbearing didn't make very many people fond of him in anything more than an "aww, what a cute puppy" sort of way, and Draco was Draco. People weren't pushing and shoving to be able to call themselves the best friends of two blokes like them, so it just made sense that they just sort of take that spot in the others' life. Odd, maybe, as they did make an awkward pair, but natural nonetheless.

"I thought this guy lived in Wales," then, was the only thing that Draco could really say in response. Merlin had made plans; and when Merlin made plans, they were pretty much impossible to escape.

"Well he, he does," Merlin blushed. "See, funny story really...He sort of, might...think that I live in Wales, too."

Draco grinned. Oh, Merlin. Of course. "Not up for telling him that you work for the Ministry yet? What, are you afraid he might bail, thinking a Tracker like you is going to put everything about him on file?"

"Something like that." The brunette averted his gaze and Draco stared at him. He was hiding something. It was always obvious when he was trying to hide something.

"What's wrong with him?"

Merlin's eyes widened. "Oh don't say it like that, Draco, there's nothing _wrong_ with him..."

"Yeah? Then what are you ashamed of? I mean, you were a Hufflepuff for fuck's sake, you don't get much more embarrassing than that."

"He's a Muggle," Merlin said quickly and then immediately clamped his hand over his mouth, as if he'd said something taboo. Draco stared at him. Merlin's fingers parted not long afterward and he added, "And thinks I'm a Muggle as well," before going back to attempting to keep himself quiet. Draco shook his head slowly.

"Merlin, Merlin, Merlin...How did you even manage to pull that off, with a name like yours and all? Not very Muggle, now is it?"

Merlin began to speak again, this time without parting his fingers so all that Draco got out of what he said was a lot of smothered words and awkward noises. Upon realizing this, Merlin removed his hand and said almost too quietly for Draco to hear, "Told him my mum lost a bet."

The blond shook his head again. "Merlin, Merlin, Merlin..."

"I get it, not the best way to start a relationship," he mumbled, his usually present grin noticeably absent by this point. "But it would mean a lot if you just...didn't judge me for it right now, okay? Just come with me after our shift's done and promise you'll be nice."

Draco sighed. Though it was true that his days of Muggle-hating were long behind him, he had never gotten comfortable with the idea of being friends with them. Which was why when Merlin was out with his friends, Draco tended to stay home or see if Pansy was in town or do something that involved anything but being seen with Muggles. Prejudices don't just disappear, and though he had been trying (mainly to keep his job, as Potter was still as bloody _defensive_ of Muggles as ever) it was always best for him to avoid being around them if he could. But...Merlin seemed genuinely interested in the guy he was talking about, and though Draco had never been the considerate and caring friend before, he was trying it out to help rehabilitate his status after the war. If this was part of changing who you were, he supposed it wouldn't _kill_ him to smile and play Muggle for an hour...

"Yeah, yeah, fine whatever," he muttered after a few seconds. "I'll be nice to your sodding boyfriend. But you owe me, Emrys. A normal cup of tea or something in exchange for my soul tonight seems like a fair deal."

"Again with the dramatics," Merlin said, though his grin was coming back so Draco didn't berate him for it. "You have yourself a deal, Draco."

The two then turned toward the door as they were once more interrupted by a soft knock. Again, there was Potter standing in the doorway, though this time he didn't look nearly as self-conscious as he had before, though his eyes did dart from Draco to the desk and back again several times before he spoke. "Sorry if I'm interrupting anything," he said quietly, as though he were in a library disturbing two intent readers, "but the Trackers I sent to Glasglow are back, and I figured the two of you wouldn't want to miss the meeting."

There was a pause that bordered on awkward when Merlin gave a bright, encouraging smile to Draco, as if to silently say _See, I told you so, you little shit. Now everything will be okay._ The two exchanged a short, silent conversation in looks alone and then Merlin turned to Harry and said brightly, "Thanks, mate. We'll be there in a second."

Harry wasn't paying attention to Merlin, though. His gaze had once more fallen back on Draco, who was staring back with what he hoped was a blank expression. But as he met Harry's eyes, he couldn't help but think of what Merlin said before. _I think he fancies you._ But Merlin was crazy, absolutely bonkers...

"Yeah," Draco said, "we'll be there." Potter seemed to get the message after that. He nodded and looked down at his hands before mumbling, "Good," quietly. Then he looked up at Draco once more, gave something that he guessed was supposed to be a grin, and then turned on his heel and left. Immediately, Merlin started laughing near hysterically.

"He can't even _look_ at you!" he said between breaths, clutching onto his sides as he fell back in his chair. "He wants to shag you so - fucking - _badly_."

"And once more you have proven yourself to be completely mental," Draco said, slightly disgusted. "Potter does not want to," he lowered his voice, "_shag_ me and even if he did, I'm not interested so it doesn't matter anyway."

"Yeah, and I'm-"

"If you say, 'And I'm the next Minister for Magic,' I will tear your boyfriend apart, bit by bloody, Muggle bit."

That shut up Merlin quickly enough but didn't stop manly giggles from passing through his lips every now and then as Draco began to try and make order of the mess on his desk. Eventually, though, Merlin managed to say, "He's not my boyfriend, by the way," before he stood up and helped Draco finish what he was doing. "And if we don't make it to this meeting, _your_ boyfriend is probably going to storm back in here to make sure we're not shagging or something. So we should stop stalling and really get going."

"Merlin, it's like you _want_ to die and that's a shame because I was growing rather fond of you."

"Yeah, yeah, big scary Former. I get it." However, Draco didn't think he _did_ get it, because immediately after saying this, he walked over and grabbed the blonde by the shoulders. "But we have to get to that meeting. We'll tidy later. Maybe they have some good information that will lead us straight to Malcolm and company."

"Yeah and maybe I'm the next Minister for Magic," Draco said in a mocking tone but he let himself be pushed out of his office anyway, even if only for the abashed look on Potter's face when he saw the pair of them enter the conference room together. Maybe Potter fancied him and maybe he didn't. But either way, he could still have a little fun with it, right? So maybe he took the spot on Potter's immediate left on-purpose-by-coincidence and maybe he made sure that, by forcibly pulling him by the hand, Merlin was on _his_ left. It didn't mean anything. And it certainly didn't have anything to do whatsoever with whatever was running through Merlin's mind that made him have that stupid, know-it-all smirk plastered all over his face.


	2. Chapter 2

As predicted, the meeting hardly gave them any new information. There was no sign of the Baddocks anywhere and the trails that they did get? Were false ones, usually to put the Trackers off their path and distract them for a few days so that the Baddocks had at least that much more time to better conceal themselves. Something that Draco honestly could have told everyone in that room if they were smart enough to listen to him, but he didn't say that out loud. No one would listen to him anyway. However, his anger and frustration didn't escape everyone's eyes. Merlin's foot somehow ended up next to his in the course of the meeting, and whenever his hand clenched around his coffee mug, a sharp pain erupted where Merlin stomped on his toes and he remembered to keep his cool. There was no need to scare anyone and give them any more of a reason to attack him when his back was turned. He just had to keep quiet until there was an opening to speak.

That opening came quicker than he realized. When Higgs and Turpin took their seats after their presentation, there was a few moments of silence as everyone took in the information they had just received. Which honestly was...nothing. But then, Potter turned slightly to his left and cleared his throat to get the room's attention. "From what I understand," he said, "we're not getting any new leads. We haven't been for weeks. And it's not your fault - it isn't. You all have done excellent, excellent work." He paused and glanced at Draco, looking the very definition of...guilty? There was no other word for the look on his face. "I think, though...it's time we tried something else. We have been thinking like Trackers - trying to be convenient and searching around where we found the less intelligent Formers. We're retracing our steps and hoping to find a lead that we're never going to find. What we haven't been thinking like, though, are _Formers_."

_Please tell me he's not going to do what I think he is_, Draco thought, finally catching on and hoping his expression was blank as every pair of eyes in the room came to rest on him.

"Malfoy," Harry continued, leaning in and speaking quieter as though this were a private conversation, "I know how much you like the spotlight and you've been sitting there radiating annoyance this entire meeting. If there is anything you want to tell us, anything you have to say..."

"I'm not hiding Malcolm and his family, if that's what you're implying," Draco responded through clenched teeth, but then Merlin pressed his heel into Draco's toe and he remembered to remain professional.

Harry looked stricken, as if Draco had slapped him, and he quickly said, "That wasn't what I meant at all, I just-" He stopped, though, as Draco raised a hand to silence him. Right. Of course not - he had just jumped to conclusions. But he got it. Potter wasn't accusing him of anything. He was just...using his past to his advantage. Not that, that sucked any less, reminding everyone in the room of where Draco had been before he joined them. But they hadn't pulled on any leads since they started the investigation and if anyone knew what to do, it would be him. Besides, Potter was right - Draco did have a certain fondness for the spotlight and if they caught Malcolm after what he had to say, then he would be able to bask in the knowledge that he at least was the only reason they caught the people they were looking for. Again.

He sat in silence for a few moments more, trying to think of the right words to say. It wasn't easy. It was hard to make people who wanted to believe that the world could be wholly good and evil could be avenged think like people who recognized that oftentimes nice guys finish last. Finally, though, he found the words he was looking for. "You are all such..." He considered saying _Gryffindors_, merely to spite Potter, but when he remembered that wizards and witches from everywhere joined the Ministry, he refrained. "Heroes. You want to believe that the enemy will come to you or stay local or be easy to find. This is why we've been looking in England, in Scotland, in Wales. You expect to be smarter than your enemies." He paused before adding, "Well you're not. Especially not with a kid like Malcolm. He's young, but he's smart, and even if his parents are right on the line of being mentally retarded, they'd follow him to the ends of the Earth because even they recognize he's the only one with brains. And if I know one thing, it's that Malcolm thinks like a Slytherin, and a Slytherin with a choice-" he glanced quickly at Harry, who stared back stonily, "- would have gotten the Hell off this geographic island as quickly as possible."

There was a little bit of muttering as people took this in. Imbeciles. Like it was really a surprise that a lot of Formers had fled the country after the war. It wasn't exactly news - it was just inconvenient to them. Then Higgs called out, "Then why are we still here then, Draco? We were Slytherins once. And why have all of our other captures been around here?"

"Because you were never stupid enough to be a Death Eater, Terence," Draco replied, having expected that, "and have been with the Ministry longer than I have. And I didn't have a choice but to stay. Our Lord and Savior, Harry Potter, made sure of that." Next to him, Draco heard a quiet laugh disguised as a cough and it hadn't come from his left. He ignored it, though, and continued, "As for why the others have been caught, _think_ of who it was that we caught. Stebbins - a Hufflepuff. Hooper - Gryffindor. Smith - Hufflepuff, though barely. Ackerly, Belby, Capper, Coote. Not all Formers, not all acting of their own free will, but none were Slytherins and all of them deserved the punishments they received. Any Slytherins around after the war we either captured as soon as Voldemort fell or they have already fled. Or they were never on the Dark Lord's side in the first place. Not really. Not all Slytherins are Death Eaters and not all Death Eaters are Slytherins. You of all people should know that, Higgs."

Higgs sat back in his seat, looking a bit more contemplative. Draco had to resist smirking. He doubted that that man had thought like a Slytherin since he left Hogwarts. Everyone else, though, still looked a little wary, as if Draco were going to talk them all straight into a trap.

"Touching speech," Harry said after a little while, "and something we've all already been made aware of. So the Baddocks aren't anywhere around here. Great. Again, it's not new information. Where could they be? What leads do we have so far? That's the sort of information we need to know."

"Draco and I have actually been looking to answer that," Merlin said suddenly, leaning forward. "Well, more Draco than me, but I'm better at finding patterns than he is so he likes to keep me around and talk out loud to me and all that. But we have looked into it. We've found the three most possible locations to find them in but Draco has an entire _list _- it's impressive, really - written down somewhere that he's been-"

"And you were doing all this instead of working?" Ernie Macmillan said suddenly, leaning forward with a sneer. Merlin fell quiet, obviously stunned at the menace in his tone. He obviously wasn't used to being interrupted to be insulted, especially by someone who had been in his own house. Draco, though, used to the criticism, immediately bristled (_Macmillan_, he had always hated the stupid Hufflepuff), but to his surprise, before he could get a word out, Potter jumped to his defense.

"He's gotten a Hell of a lot more work done than you, Ernie," he said, "though that isn't really saying much since you spend most of your office hours in _my_ office bothering me about how much we can't trust the most productive member of our team. I've gotten several decent reports from Malfoy and Emrys both, and considering they were going off of nothing, _I_ find that perfectly acceptable." Draco tried not to look too smug as Macmillan slumped back in his chair, obviously disgruntled, and he hardly heard Harry at all when he turned back and said quietly, "Alright then, Malfoy. Tell us about these leads of yours."

When the words did register, though, Draco nodded and out of the corner of his eye, he could see Merlin giving him an encouraging smile. "Well first," he started, "I'm going to go ahead and take a wild stab in the dark here and say that Potter - you've probably explored any 'top secret' Death Eater hideouts that you found on your fun little journey about three years ago?" He looked over at Harry and though he was red-faced, he nodded, confirming Draco's suspicions. "And probably all of the locations I gave you, too." Another nod. "Right, so those are already cleared out. I figured, and it would have been stupid of Malcolm to hide out in any of those anyway. Our best bets right now are in three different countries - France, Australia, and America. France first because when Malcolm first joined us at Hogwarts, it was the year of the Triwizard Tournmanet and he had a fun run-in with that part-Veela from Beauxbatons. Ever since, he's expressed a deep interest in going to France and even at any point between turning fifteen and seventeen while they've been in hiding, I don't doubt that he'd tell his parents to move there. Though I've told you all that before." He looked around the room but no one would meet his eye. Even Harry was suddenly interested in the wood finish on the table. Draco carried on. "My next suspicion would be Australia because when you're hiding a wizard or family, where better to go? Our Ministry has never had close ties with theirs, as you all know, and it's not a completely horrible place to live. Not to mention, a lot of Formers talked about hiding out there after the war. Even if we don't end up finding the Baddocks, it's worth going just to see if we can find anyone else. And last...America." He paused. This one was the wildest stab in the dark, as he didn't really have any evidence to back up the claim that Malcolm would be there. It just felt...right that he'd go. After all, his _own_ parents had taken off for California as soon as Draco said that he'd be fine without them. Besides, like Australia, the Ministry didn't really communicate with the American wizarding government. It got too confusing among all the other internal problems in America's wizarding world, so that they weren't sure if they were hearing about American terrorists or their own if they talked to the President for too long. If you wanted a place to go that mixed up messages and generally made it very easy for criminals to get away, the United States wasn't really a bad place. And every Former knew it.

"America is just jam-packed with runaways. Not just from our country but a thousand other ones. It's not hard to get into, but it's easy to blend into the crowd and not hard to make a living if you know where to go. It's a bit of a stab in the dark, but I don't think we should pass on the idea of Malcolm and his family being in one of the major cities - New York, Los Angeles, and the like. It's easy to blend in and be passed over as long as you keep your head low, and mixed with the magical protection they're sure to give themselves...Well it makes a logical hideout."

Draco finished there and then sat back in his chair, waiting for a reaction. Waiting for someone to make a snide remark about how he'd thought about it too much or how he'd know how a Former who wanted to get away would react, wouldn't he? Right now, though, everyone just looked a little stunned. Like the idea that Malcolm could be as far away as America or Australia had never occurred to them if it meant he wasn't in a usual Death Eater hide out. Like it was a completely foreign concept that running away literally meant running _away_. Which it probably was. Nobody in that department but Harry and maybe Terence knew anything about how criminals reacted. They had all been there during the war, sure, but Draco had been at that battle, too. He'd seen how everyone just waiting for the enemy to go to them. He'd seen how the only people to go after the enemy never went too far. He'd seen personally how even the Death Eaters decided to stay local because of Voldemort and his crazy plots. In their war experience, it never expanded outside of Great Britain. But they didn't know about the plans to get away like he did. They hadn't heard the whispered conversations or hushed plots of treason or anything that he had heard while doing his duty for the Dark Lord. It didn't even occur to them that the world got bigger than just at home. Which was funny to him - the entire realm of magic at their disposal, but no one had even dreamed of Apparating to America to look for Formers. Nobody but him.

After a while, Draco was beginning to fear that nobody believed him. Though there were no looks of skepticism or doubt, nobody had said anything or even really reacted. Even Potter had fallen into a stony-faced silence, deep in thought. Next to him, Merlin reached under the table to grab his hand in support, but that didn't help much. If no one took his ideas seriously, they would never get anything done. They would be stuck on his case for years, until either Malcolm died or they did. But finally, someone spoke up.

"Draco's right," Terence said suddenly, though he didn't sound too enthusiastic. More disappointed, as if he wasn't looking forward to the new work load this would bring. "From a Slytherin standpoint, that makes the most logical sense. Besides, no one knows Formers like Draco."

After that, everyone else seemed to come to life, as well. Terence's input earned a few nods around the room, and a few others started whispering intently back and forth, probably trying to sway each other one way or another. A few looked skeptical, but not in that they didn't trust Draco - they gave off a vibe that was more worried about him being wrong than being untrustworthy. After a few minutes of whispering to one another, everyone in the room fell silent and turned to Harry, waiting for him to give his two cents on the ideas. He didn't say anything. He just sat, tracing patterns on the wood like it was far more interesting than whatever was happening in the room. Draco cleared his throat, hoping to break him out of his spell, and then Harry looked up, seemingly surprised to find that everyone was staring. "Well it couldn't hurt us to follow the leads regardless," Harry finally said with a shrug. "We have teams to spare - Higgs, Turpin. You two make a good team. Do you mind taking over France?"

"It'd be my pleasure, sir," Turpin said, speaking up for the first time in a while, and Terence nodded his agreement.

"Good. Macmillan, Boot - are you two okay with Australia?" He paused before adding, "And do you mind seeing if Hermione wants to go, too? She's been looking for an excuse to go back and visit her parents, and she trusts you guys."

"Whatever you want, Harry," Terry Boot said with a grin. "Anything for some warmer weather."

Harry nodded in approval and then turned to look at Draco. The blonde swallowed, knowing what was coming. "Malfoy, I want you to come with me to America, then," he said. "It's your wildest guess and also the most unfamiliar territory and I'm going to need you if we plan on finding any information at all. You're the best in our department."

"I guess I don't really have a choice then, do I?" Draco responded, a little bitterly, but Harry gave him a smile anyway.

"Merlin," he added, almost as though it were an afterthought, "you're welcome to come, too, if you want. You are Malfoy's partner, after all, and you two make a good team."

"Thanks, Harry," Merlin responded with a grin, "but I'm going to have to decline. I have some business around here to attend to. Besides, if someone isn't around to dust the office while Draco's away, he's going to get a little pissy. Best that I stay here to do work with the maps and try to find patterns in whatever information you send back to me."

And again, Merlin had made plans without Draco knowing. It wasn't a request or an option - it was an order. Draco was going to be sending information back to him, through letter or Floo call or Patronus, and Merlin was going to help all he could while sitting comfortably in a desk while he sent Draco off with Potter. And Draco was going to finish this expedition to the best of his ability and he was going to _like_ it. Not to mention, it had the added bonus of Draco and Harry being alone together for weeks, and after the little hypothesis Merlin had formed today, Draco had a feeling that was exactly what he'd been hoping for. For a Hufflepuff, Merlin could really plot like a Slytherin sometimes.

If Harry suspected anything of the sort, though, he didn't say anything. He just nodded and that was that - meeting adjourned. Draco waited as he usually did for everyone else to leave the conference room, glaring at Merlin as he turned to face his friend. "You're unbelievable," he said, and it definitely wasn't a compliment. Merlin just blinked back, smiling innocently. But anything he had to say following was again interrupted by Harry.

"Malfoy," he said, causing the blonde to turn around to face him, "I want to leave as soon as possible. Tomorrow, if we can." Draco glanced quickly over at Merlin to see if they had any plans, and when Merlin just nodded his head in encouragement, Draco followed suit and nodded as well. "Good. Meet me in my office at nine tomorrow morning. Pack for a few weeks or more, since I'm not sure how long it'll take. We'll Apparate together." And then he left the room, and it took all of Draco's willpower not to hex that stupid grin off of Merlin's face.

* * *

><p>"You're going to come back from this trip realizing exactly what I already know," Merlin said a little too happily as he and Draco appeared in an alley in Wales with a faint <em>pop<em>. "Harry thinks you're fit, and he wants to shag, and _a few weeks or more_ alone with each other?" He waggled his eyebrows suggestively. "My, my, Draco Malfoy, I have a feeling you'll be busy on this trip."

"Shut up, Merlin," was the clever response, and Merlin just laughed as he began to lead Draco down the street. "Potter isn't doing this as a way to try and get to know me. He's doing it because he thinks America is a stupid idea and he wants to be there to rub it in my face when my hypothesis fails."

Merlin frowned. "That doesn't sound too much like Harry to me, mate."

"Yeah?" Draco challenged. "Well you didn't grow up with him hating you, now did you? And where are we going anyway? This seems like a sketchy place to meet for a date."

Other than being a convenient way to change the subject, his observation did hold a little bit of truth. Merlin had just led him down a rather abandoned-looking street, empty of anything of any real importance except a couple of bookstores and a coffeeshop. Half of the shops on the street were actually closed; the other half looked old, like family businesses that were finally beginning to fail after hundreds of years. Not to mention, they were the only people on the street. It was a little eery - not creepy really, but just very haunted looking. Like it had a lot of history in it but not a lot of love. Definitely not Draco's idea of a nice place to go for a date.

"Well, it's not really a _date_, actually," Merlin said, now almost pulling Draco down the street by his hand. "It's more of a...he comes here for coffee in the evening, _I_ come here for coffee in the evening, and we usually end up talking sort of thing. Maybe. If he's here."

"Wait," Draco said, catching on as they approached the coffeeshop, "you're telling me that this guy doesn't even know you're going to be here-"

"And I don't know if he'll even be here, but please Draco, don't judge me, just..." But he never finished that sentence. Because just then, he looked into the coffeeshop and seemed to find the guy he had come here to see because his face turned bright red and he clung to Draco's hand as though it was his life force. "God, there he is."

Draco looked in through the same window as his friend. Inside, he saw a rather old looking Muggle cleaning up what seemed to be a broken coffee mug. "The old bloke? Rather odd taste there, Merlin."

"What?" The brunette peered in the window. "No, not him you dolt. The guy helping him. He's on the ground right now. Must have been his coffee."

Draco looked in again, feeling every bit like a stalker. Not that it helped much in identifying the bloke. The only things he could see were broad shoulders and blonde hair, as the guy wasn't facing him and was instead talking animatedly (or so it would seem from his hand gestures) to the store employee. "Come on," Merlin said, tugging on Draco's hand, "let's go." He stepped toward the door before pausing, looking back at Draco and dropping his hand. "And don't hold my hand, Draco, for fuck's sake, do you _want_ to give him the wrong idea?" Draco shook his head and laughed, though he decided not to say anything. Merlin could become a wreck when he was nervous, and the last thing he wanted was for him to ruin his chances with this guy. If that happened, then he'd be a moping mess while Draco was out with Harry and he would have to worry about him committing suicide or - God forbid - doing sloppy work and ruining any of their chances of finding the Baddocks. No, it was best to just let Merlin be Merlin and see how this worked out. Even if he wasn't sure that Merlin's idea of being interested in someone he "happened" to encounter at a coffeeshop to be the brightest idea in the book.

The first thing Draco noticed as they entered the coffeeshop, though, was that the guy and the old man didn't seem to be having such a pleasant conversation. The guy's voice was raised and sounded harsh and he was saying something about the "clumsiness of an old fool, don't you have anybody else working here _ever_?" and the old man was just looking annoyed, like he was trying to resist punching the young blond in the face, something that Draco would strongly advise against. Both, however, fell silent and turned to look toward the door as Merlin let it fall shut behind him and the elderly man broke into a wide grin. "Merlin!" he said, walking toward him, happy to be leaving the other guy behind him. "I was wondering if you'd show up today." He looked over at Draco and added, "And I see you brought a friend." He paused. "_Just_ a friend, right?"

"Just a friend," Draco assured him, and Merlin flushed.

"Hello to you, too, Uncle," he mumbled. Then he added with a bit more confidence, "Hope I didn't miss anything too exciting?"

"You managed to miss him dumping my coffee on my lap," the man behind Merlin's uncle interrupted, rather rudely in Draco's opinion and he knew a thing or two about saying things rudely. "And then dropping the mug on my briefcase." Merlin frowned, surveying his uncle's face before glancing at the shards of mug still on the ground. "This is what happens when you leave him alone for too long, I guess."

"I didn't know my presence was so _desperately_ needed," Merlin responded. "Next time I'll try to be more punctual. Lord knows we don't want you to have endure _broken glass_ ever again." His eyes surveyed the other man, darting around and obviously trying hard not to stare at the stain on his crotch. "Or scalding hot coffee. Do you need a towel?"

Draco snorted, trying to imagine the awkwardness that would ensue with Merlin, a warm towel, and this guy's crotch, and the other blonde's attention immediately snapped to his face. He met his gaze with something of a challenging glare, something Draco responded to with a raised eyebrow. "Yes, well," the guy said, "I'll try not to hold it against you or your boyfriend this time. But _next_ time, Merlin..." He trailed off, crossing his arms over his chest. Draco just shook his head.

Merlin, though, didn't seem phased. "Yeah, yeah, whatever you say, you dolt," he said, as if this was the type of thing that happened all the time, and then much to Draco's surprise, he went behind the counter of the small shop and pulled out an apron and a broom - and not a racing broom, either. An actual broom. "Though it wouldn't have killed you to help my uncle pick up the glass, would it?"

"I mopped up some of the coffee," the guy offered, as if that was service enough, and Merlin rolled his eyes before pulling on the apron and walking over to start sweeping up the glass. Draco just stared, slightly intrigued. He'd never seen Merlin clean without magic before - in fact, the last person he can remember cleaning without magic was Filch, and that was because the Squib _couldn't_ use magic. It took him a moment to remember that the people they were around were Muggles (or at least the guy who got coffee spilled on him; Merlin's uncle was questionable, as Draco had heard quite a few stories if this was the uncle he thought it was). If Merlin just used a spell to clean everything up, he'd be breaking wizarding law. So he put on an apron and actually pulled out a broom to clean up a mess he didn't even make. _Only Merlin,_ he couldn't help but think, shaking his head slowly at the realization.

The better realization, though, came from watching the guy Merlin had come to see. Though the initial air he gave off was one of "douche bag customer who was worse than the scum between Merlin's probably filthy Hufflepuff toes", he watched Merlin sweeping with almost a bit of a fondness and even bent down to hold the dustpan while Merlin swept the broken mug into it. And his eyes followed the young wizard all the way to the trash and back, like watching him clean up was the most interesting and fantastic thing he had ever seen in his life. _That_ certainly was interesting, and something Draco noted to tell Merlin later so that he could be sure that he was happy the entire time he was gone.

"I can't give you an afternoon to yourself in this bloody place even once without you trying to break stuff now, is that it Arthur?" Merlin said, breaking the silence that had fallen over the room. Scowling, Merlin's uncle left Draco's side to go back behind the counter and await more customers, and Draco took this as his cue to join Merlin. The guy (Arthur, apparently) shrugged, taking his seat again at his table. Merlin joined him and Draco followed suit, pulling up a third chair to take a seat at Merlin's right. "Oh, and this is Draco. Sorry, I almost forgot you were there for a second." Draco raised his eyebrows but didn't say anything. "Oh and he's not my boyfriend," Merlin said quickly, turning back to Arthur now. "Sorry. It just...registered that you said that earlier."

Arthur stared at Draco again with that same challenging glare, as if he expected him to run away with Merlin thrown over his shoulder, and held out his hand. Draco took it despite this, though, and tried not to notice how hard Arthur was squeezing his fingers. "Pleasure to meet you Drake. I'm Arthur."

"It's Draco," he replied quickly, taking his hand back, "and the pleasure is all mine." He debated saying something embarrassing about how Merlin hasn't stopped talking about him all day but thought better of it. If he wanted to succeed with his plans to leave with a happy Merlin so that the world didn't end while he was away, sabotaging this meeting wasn't the best way to go about it. No, it was best that he just put on his best Malfoy manners and that he made sure to wipe the hand Arthur had touched on his pants instead of in plain sight on his shirt.

Not that he had to worry much about saying the wrong thing. The two other men quickly slid into conversation that didn't seem to involve him, and Draco sat and watched as he discovered the only other person in the entire world who could make Merlin pull out his claws. Arthur was rude, blunt, and inconsiderate, with the air of a pre-war Draco Malfoy that made the slighter blond feel a little sick. But if Merlin saw these traits (or even cared or let them affect him) he sure didn't show it. He had a sharp tongue that was able to put the man in his place and an even quicker wit so that the conversation they were having didn't even sound much like an argument. In fact, if one were to ignore what they were actually saying, it might even sound affectionate. To be honest, though, Draco was having a tough time figuring out what exactly it was that Merlin saw in the guy. He was very...well very _Malfoy_ without actually _being_ a Malfoy, and that bothered him. No one who hung around creepy abandoned coffee shops should have that much of an air of self-entitlement. No, no, an ego like that belonged to someone who could buy that coffee shop and turn it into their personal playhouse. Not a common Muggle who was offended by broken glass.

"Ah, speaking of needing to stay awake," Arthur said suddenly, clapping his hands together and waking Draco from his thoughts, "I just remembered that some imbecile spilled coffee on my pants earlier. I'm still in need." Draco scowled. How dare he talk about Merlin's uncle like that - to any man who was kin to those he was supposed to care about. Arthur looked down and Draco thought for a moment that he realized how harsh he had sounded but then he just added, "And a towel would be great. Thank God I don't have to go back to work tonight, my father would kill me..."

If Merlin cared about Arthur's carelessness (or if this was a new development), it didn't show. Blinded by love. Instead, he just jumped up and said, "Oh right, my bad. I'll get that for you right now." He turned to go but Draco grabbed his wrist and stood himself.

"I'll get it," he said forcefully, hoping his friend would follow his orders for once. "You stay and entertain your..." He looked over at Arthur and smirked. "Friend."

"Don't be stupid, Draco," Merlin said, pulling his arm back. "You've never worked a coffee machine before in your life. Besides, you don't know what he likes-"

"Oh for fuck's sake, Merlin, I'll get your uncle to help me. Gaius, right? No, don't even try to protest, you dolt. You have company to entertain; it's only polite."

"If you're worried about being impolite," Arthur cut in, "I suggest you don't use that language either."

Draco turned sharply to fix his gaze on Arthur and clenched his teeth to keep himself from saying something too harsh. Though he normally didn't use language like that in public (it was, as Arthur pointed out, impolite after all) it was different with Merlin. After all, the phrases he was used to saying ("For the love of Merlin" or "For Merlin's sake") tended to bring unwanted jokes from his friend and sometimes even points of confusion. So after the first time they'd broken into fits of laughter over Merlin thinking Draco's frustration was actually him calling him into the room, they had decided that it was perfectly acceptable to say "for fuck's sake" instead. It was just something between them; something Arthur need not intrude on. But of course, he did. Unknowingly, yes, but it annoyed Draco all the same. It probably didn't help that the guy was a pompous asshole that grated Draco's nerves more than even Harry fucking Potter. "I was worried about _Merlin_ being impolite," he said, pushing his friend back down into his chair, despite Merlin's look of protest. "_I_ however have no desire to dare and try to impress you with my manners. You are..." He surveyed the man in front of him. "Beneath me. However, I would be more than willing to get you your cup of coffee and a nice wet towel, so let's just consider it even." Then he began to walk toward the back counter before he could say anything worse and have to suffer the wrath of Merlin, calling out, "Gaius? There's a certain blonde git over here who wants another certain mug of coffee..."

"And the other blonde git doesn't know how to work a coffee machine," Merlin added, his tone a little less kind than it might have been on any other occasion. "So he requires the assistance of a tired old man. And a wet towel."

"Your blonde git is the one that needs a towel, Merlin," Draco responded with a smile. He turned around before Merlin could respond, walking behind the counter to greet Merlin's uncle with a polite grin. "So uh," he started but Gaius held up a hand to stop him.

"I've heard a lot about you, Draco Malfoy," he said quietly, "and I'm sure you are a very capable wizard. But I am not allowing you touch my machines."

Draco glanced over at the black coffee machine that seemed to be just an ordinary Muggle appliance. He raised his eyebrows. "Okay...do you want my help with anything else then? I could get Arthur that towel..."

"I'm sure Mr. Pendragon is more than capable of getting his own damn towel," Gaius muttered, looking annoyed as he glanced over at his nephew. Draco followed suit. He was back to whatever conversation he was having with Arthur, talking animatedly with a bright grin on his face. Brighter than usual. And even if it killed Draco to admit it, he hadn't seen Merlin look that happy since...well since he last had a boyfriend. Even if Arthur was a git, he was a git that for some reason made Merlin happy. It was then, though that what Gaius had said finally registered in his mind.

"Wait," he said, leaning against the counter. "Did you just say Arthur _Pendragon_?"

Gaius grinned knowingly. "Recognize the name, do ya, son?" Draco nodded, looking back at Arthur a bit more contemplatively. When he had found out that Merlin's last name was Emrys, he hadn't been surprised. A lot of witches and wizards named their sons after the great Merlin, and having the same last name as him must have just made the decision that much more amusing and easy in Merlin's parents' eyes. But Arthur was a Muggle. What were the odds that two people from completely different worlds named _Merlin Emrys_ and _Arthur Pendragon_ would actually encounter one another? What were the odds that they'd get along? What were the odds that they'd even exist in the same generation? "Yeah, it shocked me, too. But I always knew not even time could keep those two apart."

"Pardon?"

But Gaius turned away from him. "The towels are back in the kitchen in the top drawer. Just run one under hot water, wring it out, and when you come back out, Arthur's coffee will be done." And that was that - Draco was obviously dismissed.

He made his way back into the kitchen and searched the room for the drawers. Finally, he noticed them right next to the sink. He pulled open the top one, grabbed a white towel and turned on the hot water to get it nice and warm. What had Gaius meant? _I always knew not even time could keep those two apart._ Was he just referring to the fact that Merlin wasn't getting sick of Arthur with time? Or that no matter how long Draco kept Merlin at work, he wouldn't stay away? Or was it something else? Something deeper? Something...magical?

He ran the towel under the water and cringed before wringing it out - it was hot. It didn't matter, though, about what Gaius meant. Surely whatever he was on about had nothing to do with anything Draco had ever learned in History of Magic. It was just...a coincidence. After all, that Arthur didn't seem anything like the Arthur he had learned about. He wouldn't be surprised if the stupid man didn't even know who the original Arthur Pendragon _was_ or any of the things he had accomplished with Merlin's assistance. Excalibur was probably just a myth to him. Yeah. A myth.

He shut off the water and went back to the front counter. Sure enough, there was Arthur's coffee just waiting for him, steaming slightly in the cool room. Gaius was nowhere to be found. Draco frowned but he grabbed the cup with his free hand and made his way back to the table. He set the coffee cup down in front of Arthur, interrupting the guy mid-sentence, and dumped the towel on his lap. "You're welcome," he said simply and then took his seat again. Merlin stared at him, looking somewhat hurt.

Arthur, though, didn't act out. He just grabbed the towel and said, "Thank you. Excuse me, I'm going to go to the bathroom to...uhm." He glanced down at his lap and Merlin smiled.

"We get it. I have to talk to Draco privately anyway."

Arthur smiled tightly and then pushed his chair back, rising and walking to the bathroom. As soon as he disappeared behind the door, Merlin turned to Draco. "What do you think you're doing?" he hissed, and Draco stared innocently back.

"I don't know what you're talking about-"

"Telling him he's _beneath_ you? Dumping the towel in his lap like he's done something wrong? Do you not even know who he is?"

"Of course I do, Merlin, he's Arthur Pendragon, world class git-"

"No, he's not. He's not Arthur Pendragon. Not here, in this stupid coffee shop. Here, he's just Arthur. And he's common and he has his guard down and he makes me laugh, and you treat him like absolute garbage for nothing."

Draco couldn't believe what he was hearing. He knew Merlin could be a bit daft when he was friends with someone, but this? "He was insulting your uncle!"

"Well Gaius poured coffee on his lap, he probably deserved it. He's temperamental."

"Oh right, because that couldn't have been an _accident_-"

"Not with Gaius." Merlin sounded so frustrated that Draco actually felt bad. "He...he doesn't like Arthur. He's like you - thinks he's just...arrogant and narcissistic and just...Arthur Pendragon. Son of one of the richest men in Wales." Draco raised his eyebrows and Merlin leaned forward. "But he's more than that. He may work for his father but he's not him. He's not just some heartless businessman, and I thought you of all people would know what it's like to be in his situation. I thought you'd get it." He shook his head. "But I was wrong."

"Merlin...Merlin, I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize to me, Draco. You didn't do anything to me."

The two of them fell silent and Draco cast his eyes down to the table. As much as he hated to admit it, Merlin was right. He had pre-judged Arthur; he should have known that Merlin wouldn't like someone so arrogant if they didn't have more to them. He remembered what Merlin had said back at the office. _He was being an outright prick when I ran into him but when I saw him again, he recognized me and apologized. Bloke like that can't be all bad._ Right. Of course. He had just seen the...wrong side of Arthur. The side he wanted to see ever since he heard him insult Merlin's uncle. The same way people saw the wrong him still after all these years. It was wrong of him to want others to see him as a different person than what he came off as when he couldn't do the same for others. _Damn Hufflepuff,_ he thought almost bitterly. _Rubbing off on me. I've gone soft._

"Arthur's dad," he said suddenly, remembering what Gaius had said earlier. "Is his name Uther?"

Merlin looked shocked, like Draco had just said something that surprised him, but just then, Arthur came out of the bathroom, his pants wet but definitely not as bad as they were before. The two other men stared up at him as he came back and stood next to the table, looking the very definition of awkward.

"I should, uhm, get going," he said, placing a hand on the back of his neck. "My dad probably needs some help. Around the office or at home. Or Morgana probably...she's always getting into something." Merlin shot Draco an accusing glare, but his features softened as he looked up at Arthur.

"I understand. If you want to take that coffee to go...you can always bring the mug back tomorrow?"

Arthur glanced down at the coffee sitting on the table. He opened his mouth like he was going to protest but then seemed to think better of it. "Yeah, I'd like that," he said. "Thanks, Merlin. I'll drop it off tomorrow after work. Usual time." He smiled, a real smile not the tight awkward one he had been giving to Draco all night, and grabbed the mug. "Until next time then. Pleasure meeting you, Draco."

"You too, Arthur," he replied quietly. And then with a tight nod, Arthur picked up his briefcase and his coffee and he was gone. Merlin sighed and put his hands in his head. Draco frowned. The two sat like that for a long time, just thinking.

Finally, though, Draco said, "I think he likes you."

Merlin looked up. "Yeah?"

"Yeah. Definitely fancies you."

Merlin nodded slowly, though it looked more like a filler than an agreement. "I hope so. He's brilliant."

Draco didn't know how to respond to that. Thankfully, though, he didn't have to. "Come on," Merlin continued, standing and holding out his hand. "Let's get you back home. You have a long day ahead of you." Draco nodded in response and took his friend's hand. Then he felt a familiar tugging sensation around his navel and he felt the air get knocked out of him as his entire body was compressed into a small vacuum of space and he and Merlin disappeared with a faint _pop_.


End file.
